In September of 2021, Foxy and I ended a normal day and we’re getting ready for bed. I took my meds, including the medication I was prescribed to help me get into deeper REM sleep. I had been devoid of this deep sleep for a few days and really needed that elusive rest.
What seemed like a short time later, I had entered that much-needed REM stage when I had a sensation as if someone was administering CPR along with a brushing of something on my face. Dazed and disoriented, I began to realize Foxy was on my chest jumping up and down repeatedly and licking my face anxiously. As I became more coherent, I faintly recognized a noise and realized it was a fire alarm and Foxy was working for all she was worth to get me up.
Reality raced through my head, I jumped up, grabbed Foxy’s vest and we quickly headed for safety. As we stepped outside, people were everywhere yelling to get out of the building. Firetrucks were all over the area. And then I saw it – the unmistakable bright orange glow of a large fire blazing in one of the apartment windows.
With the impact of my deep sleep my medication, I never heard the alarms and sirens. Foxy knew that there was something wrong and worked hard to get me up and out of the building to safety. My Foxy girl was already an amazing service dog that had saved my life due to my medical issues. Who knew she would save me from what could have been a deadly situation she was never trained to respond to.
Juice saved the life of a suicidal stranger by insistently bringing his recipient to a young man, who was hiding razor blades he’d put in his pockets to take his life. A former police officer, Ken knew this young man was in trouble. The juice spent several minutes licking the teenager and letting him pet her. As he began petting Juice, he revealed he had concealed the razor blades, and eventually handed them to Ken. The next day, Ken received a call telling him that the young man told the crisis center “had it not been for Juice, I would have killed myself yesterday”.
Today, the young man is recovering, and getting the help he needs.
Both of these dogs were named heroes for 2017, as both of them stopped suicidal idealizations in their recipients. In both cases, their recipient had drawn a gun, pointed it at themselves and the dogs successfully knocked the guns from their hands, bringing them back to the here and now, saving their lives.
A Tie!!
